HoYoverse has unveiled its next big Honkai game. 

HoYoVerse, the game developer behind Genshin Impact, Zenless Zone Zero, and Honkai: Star Rail, has officially unveiled its next game: Honkai: Nexus Anima. Originally teased during an anniversary concert for Honkai: Star Rail, the game is described as a “creature-collecting adventure strategy game” with gameplay akin to an auto battler. 

HoYoverse has now opened up pre-registrations for the game’s first closed beta, entitled the Nexus Bond Test. The developer also released a new trailer to mark the occasion:

Honkai: Nexus Anime reveals early gameplay footage and beta details

HoYoverse is all-set to kick off marketing on its next big game. Honkai Nexus Anima appears to meld creature-collecting and auto battling gameplay together, in a game that centres around cute little creatures called Anima. Here’s how the developer describes this game’s premise:

"Honkai: Nexus Anima is a brand-new creature-collector adventure strategy game in the Honkai series. In this world, Nexus is the unseen bonds woven between paired concepts, such as Love and Hate, Light and Dark, Life and Death, among many others. However, this balance is unexpectedly shattered when a sudden rupture severs those connections, scattering their remnant powers across the land in the form of Anima. 

The description continues, “From this fractured order, players embark on a journey: through missions and combat, they forge bonds with these Anima, unlocking abilities that reflect the unique concepts each embodies. Moreover, these abilities can be combined to create diverse battle tactics and influence how players explore and engage with the expansive overworld.”

HoYoverse also released early gameplay footage from the title, which confirmed that players will be able to create and customise their own characters in-game. They play as a plane-hopping traveler who has only recently escaped imprisonment, and now finds themselves in a tranquil town. In this town, they’ll encounter Anima companions, and bring these companions into combat via Nexus Battles. 

The story will revolve around key mysteries surrounding the protagonist’s past. Judging by the video above, players will not only be able to control Anima within the auto battle-like Nexus Battles, but also in the overworld. The game’s official website lists down a few of these adorable Anima, including the pudding-inspired Puddlipup and long-tailed Taileep.

A few of the game’s more humanoid characters are also shown off on the website, though they are divided between three categories: Sovereigns, Novarchs, and Others. Time will tell what these terms refer to in the game’s story. A few characters are also referred to as Animasters, which likely means that they own and train Anima for Nexus Battles.

Players can try Honkai: Nexus Anima early by signing up for the Nexus Bond Test, which is set to run on both PC and iOS sometime in the near future. Players can pre-register for the test on the game’s website, though they’ll have to fill out a questionnaire first.